Taylor Swift’s 'The Life a Showgirl' lyrics: Here's what they mean

"The Life of a Showgirl," Taylor Swift’s 12th studio album, is here with 12 new songs for Swifties to decode. 

Swift’s latest era was released at midnight Friday, Oct. 3, some six weeks after she announced the new album on fiancé Travis Kelce’s podcast New Heights.

Swift has said "The Life of a Showgirl" is meant to embody her "Eras Tour" — a singular global phenomenon, a canonical event in the history of pop performance that, in its over three-hour runtime, was a sensory explosion. On these 12 tracks, she’s approximating glitz and glamour with humanity and humor. She spends no time waiting in the wings. 

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So let the show begin. Here’s what’s been decoded so far from "Life of a Showgirl." 

"Elizabeth Taylor"

Lyric:

"That view of Portofino was on my mind / When you called me at the Plaza Athénée"

Meaning:

When Swift announced her new album, she did so with the introduction of a shade she’s calling Portofino Orange Glitter after donning the color onstage during the latter part of her "Eras Tour." 

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What they're saying:

"I’ve just always liked it," she said on "New Heights." "It feels like energetically how my life has felt. And this album is about what was going on behind the scenes in my inner life during this tour." 

She and beau Kelce were spotted last year in Lake Como, Italy, but it is unclear if they spent time in nearby Portofino. Additionally, the standard version of her album is available in "sweat and vanilla perfume Portofino orange vinyl." As for the Plaza Athénée? That’s a luxury hotel in Paris.

Lyric:

"Be my NY when Hollywood hates me"

Meaning:

Both locations make appearances in Swift’s songwriting. Among them: "Welcome to New York" from 2014’s "1989" and "White Horse" from 2008’s "Fearless." She also owns property in both locations.

Swift has long internalized criticisms and responded to them in her art, most directly in 2017’s "Reputation." Here, she is once again concerned with her perception. Except this time, her love acts as an anchor. "I can’t have fun if I can’t have you," she flirts.

Lyric:

"Babe, I would trade the Cartier for someone to trust … just kidding"

Meaning:

In August of this year, Swift announced her engagement to Kelce by posting a carousel of images on Instagram. Eagle-eyed fans noticed that the ring wasn’t the only jewelry she was showing off. She was also wearing a Cartier watch.

Lyric:

"We hit the best booth at Musso & Frank’s"

Meaning:

Since opening in 1919, Musso & Frank Grill has been a hot spot for celebrities in Los Angeles – embodying the kind of old school Hollywood glamour that inspired "The Life of a Showgirl" artwork.

Lyric:

"All my white diamonds and lovers are forever"

Meaning:

The song is titled "Elizabeth Taylor" after the classic Hollywood starlet who, in 1991, created her own perfume called "White Diamonds."

"Ruin the Friendship"

Lyric:

"You drive, 85 / Gallatin Road and the lakeside beach"

Meaning:

There are several Gallatin Roads in the United States, but given the other lyrics in the song, this one likely refers to a street in Hendersonville, Tennessee, a suburb of Nashville, where Swift grew up. 

Lyric:

"But as the 50 Cent song played"

Meaning:

A 50 Cent reference further implies this song is rooted in Swift’s teen years in the ’00s, when the rapper was at the height of his popularity. The song also mentions "prom" and "second period," typically associated with high school.

Lyric:

"When I left school, I lost track of you / Abigail called me with the bad news / Goodbye"

Meaning:

Abigail is Swift’s best friend Abigail Anderson, who she attended Hendersonville High School with. It’s the second time Abigail is mentioned on a Swift album: the first is on "Fifteen" from "Fearless."

"Wood"

Lyric:

"Redwood tree / It ain’t hard to see"

Meaning:

In Oct. 2023, Swift and Kelce made a surprise appearance at "Saturday Night Live" for a season premiere episode that featured host Pete Davidson and musical performer/friend to Swift, Ice Spice. Afterwards, "SNL" cast member Bowen Yang described the couple as the "tallest people in the world," on the "Las Culturistas" podcast he co-hosts with comedian Matt Rogers. "I see them together, I go, ‘I am in the Redwood Forest.’" Hence, "Redwood tree."

Lyric:

"New Heights of manhood"

Meaning:

"New Heights" is a direct reference to the Kelces’ podcast of the same name.

"Honey"

Lyric:

"Summertime spritz, pink skies"

Meaning:

Physical album variants have been a huge part of Swift’s "The Life of a Showgirl" rollout, and in some ways, they appear in the lyrics of "Honey." The color of her exclusive vinyl release with Target, "The Crowd Is Your King" edition, was described online as "summertime spritz pink shimmer."

Lyric:

"Wintergreen kiss, all mine"

Meaning:

This line relates to another one of her variants: "The Shiny Bug Collection," which is available in "violet shimmer marbled vinyl" and more relevantly, "wintergreen and onyx marbled vinyl." ("Violet" is mentioned in "Elizabeth Tylor," as is "onyx" in "Opalite.")

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